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Polished Concrete Plus Creates Wood Grain Finishes

Jeff Kasella, owner of Minnesota-based Polished Concrete Plus, transformed his career in the concrete business after a hip replacement necessitated a shift from physically demanding concrete placement to decorative concrete work. Having been involved in concrete since age 13, assisting his brother-in-law and father, Kasella sought a less strenuous yet equally engaging aspect of the industry. In 2013, while working for a contractor with various divisions, including Polished Concrete Plus, he began to focus on decorative projects, serving both commercial and residential clients. Initially, his work involved tile patterns and logos on floors, and he successfully completed larger projects like a school gymnasium. In 2017, Kasella acquired Polished Concrete Plus, along with its existing assets and new equipment necessary for polished concrete projects. His first significant commercial endeavor under his ownership was for a Coborn’s Cash Wise store, part of a larger employee-owned company with numerous retail locations across the Midwest. He has since continued to work on multiple Coborn's projects. While commercial projects constitute 80% of his business in terms of square footage, Kasella also undertakes significant residential work. One notable early project involved finishing 4,500 square feet of floors, including break rooms and a warehouse walkway, for a Fingerhut warehouse addition that his father had originally poured. Driven by a desire to innovate beyond standard polishing, Kasella began experimenting with creating realistic wood grain patterns on concrete. After initial trials in his garage, he convinced his mother to allow him to apply this finish to the concrete floor of her new patio home, which is built directly on a concrete slab. This initial residential success led to approximately 10-15 patio home polish projects annually. The wood grain finish involves a micro-topping technique where multiple layers are applied, and epoxy applications are strategically placed with tape to control color and grain patterns. Kasella uses his shop as a showroom, displaying test samples to help clients visualize and select their desired looks. This approach has proven highly successful, with 13,000 square feet of wood grain finishes produced for residential customers in 2018. For his work, Kasella employs HTC Duratiq T8 polishers, paired with Ermator Vacuums, highlighting the versatility of the T8 which allows for diverse tooling combinations from brands like HTC, SASE, and JON-DON to meet specific floor requirements. For staining, densifying, and stain guarding, he uses Ameripolish products, and for any repair work, Metzger/McGuire products such as SRG, Rapid Refloor, and EP80 joint fillers are utilized. Kasella emphasizes the unique, hand-stained nature of each plank in his wood grain designs, noting a significant improvement in efficiency since his first wood grain project. What once took three people six hours to complete 600 square feet can now be achieved for 1,700 square feet in the same timeframe. He continuously experiments with different top colors to add depth to his designs, finishing projects with densifier application, polishing, stain guard, and buff polishing. Kasella manages a team of seven, including himself, augmented by college students during the summer for outdoor decorative concrete projects. His company operates seven polishing machines, enabling up to three crews for smaller residential jobs or continuous operation for large commercial projects, allowing Polished Concrete Plus to transform ordinary concrete slabs into distinctive and beautiful floors. #PolishedConcrete #DecorativeConcrete #WoodGrainFinish #ConcreteArtistry #FloorDesign #JeffKasella #ConcreteRefurbishment #ResidentialConcrete #CommercialConcrete #PolishedConcrete #DecorativeConcrete #WoodGrainFinish #ConcreteArtistry #FloorDesign #JeffKasella #ConcreteRefurbishment #ResidentialConcrete #CommercialConcrete

80 months ago

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